


One of a Pair

by utcrypticiores



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Gen, Hanji loves puns, I am sort of trash, Levi is kind of a dick, Maybe. I'm not sure, Most of the time, Platonic Relationships, Real science facts, What else is new, bad jokes guarenteed, but a good kind of trash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-29
Updated: 2015-03-29
Packaged: 2018-03-20 04:11:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,189
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3636237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/utcrypticiores/pseuds/utcrypticiores
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>At Wall Maria High School, Levi Rivalle and Hanji Zoe end up as lab partners in a biology class, and have to create a presentation together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	One of a Pair

It was a sunny September afternoon, the birds were singing, people were laughing, and it wouldn’t be a stretch for a few adorable cartoon animals to frolic into the classroom. Needless to say, Levi Rivalle wanted to be anywhere else.

Levi propped up his face with one hand, his elbow on the desk. Another year, another class, another classroom. Currently: Honors Biology. He was an old pro. His junior year, he felt like he’d gotten this school thing pretty much figured out. He was bound to Harvard, then to a job as a lawyer. 

Well, hopefully at least.

At the moment, class hadn't started yet. He took the time to people-watch, without much drive to actually interact with anyone. But that didn’t mean nobody noticed him. Erwin, the serious kid with the eyebrows, waved from his desk. Petra, the nice girl from across the street, who he’d known just about forever, came over and asked about his summer. Ourourou, Aurou, or whatever his name was, temporarily slouched over Levi’s desk with bloody tissues over his mouth, because he’d cut his mouth on braces, again. It was the same group, again for another year. A few others were scattered around. Background characters, thought Levi. Mostly, in a school as small as theirs, and in honors classes especially, he didn’t see many new faces. Sometimes Levi felt like new friends were going extinct. 

Rose Maria School District wasn’t too popular a choice for those who had the chance to move. In this town, they once had to send the fifth graders for an extra year at elementary school, because they couldn’t afford the extra class at the middle school. That was a long time ago, of course, but most kids from Levi’s class were still pretty bitter. 

As Levi was preoccupied with opening his notebook, someone plunked next to him. Their stuff spilled over the desk, papers and folders cascading onto the floor. Tch. Levi tapped his pen on his paper and looked up, annoyed. A new face, (and the cause of the mess), was staring at him, awestruck. The new kid, who was a little too close for Levi’s comfort, grinned. Whoever they were, Levi thought, they were the most absurd looking person he’d seen today. 

The mess-causer was tall and lanky, with poorly tied back brown hair, a pair of round wire rimmed glasses, and the biggest grin Levi had ever seen. The person, who Levi couldn’t determine was a guy or a girl, was dressed in electric blue and green layered tee shirts, tan corduroy pants, and tall leather boots with yellow laces. Still staring at Levi, they exhaled slowly, and the smile broadened, if that was at all possible. “You are Levi Rivalle.”

What the heck? Levi figured most kids in his own class didn’t know his name, let alone strangers. “Yeah. And you are?” He replied. This launched the fastest stream of words he’d ever heard. 

“My name’s Hanji. I’m 14, but I skipped some grades, so I’m a sophomore now. I got into this class because I got recommendations from my old science teacher. I mean, I’m sure you weren’t wondering, but I’m obviously not one of the like, six, other kids in here. Not that I counted. Well, I might have counted a little. Anyway you’re probably wondering how I knew your name, it’s because a teacher actually told be about you and I having similar work habits, and so I looked you up online, not like a stalker or anything, ah hahah…” Levi immediately had the impression that if left uninterrupted, Hanji would talk forever. Of course, there was nothing wrong with talking a lot. There’s nothing wrong with talking to strangers, either. But Levi didn’t like a lot of things. 

He leaned back in his chair. “I really don’t think we’re very similar.”

Hanji laughed, again, loudly, and Levi noted that they didn’t sit still very well. Hanji slid off the chair and crawled under the desk, picking up papers and talking at the same time. “I took this class because I really, really love biology. I want to major in it someday. I have tons of pets I study, and I’d love to get a job working with animals, especially the really big and dangerous ones. I’ve loved them since I was a little kid and I…” Blah, blah, blah. Levi didn’t hear a word of it. Hanji dumped the mess back onto the desk next to Levi’s perfectly organized, plain white binder. Hanji had a binder too, dark green plastic covered with grainy pictures of lizards and drawings of Godzilla. There was just no paper in it. Levi zoned out as Hanji continued, and when she finally sat down, enjoyed a moment of silence

Their teacher, Mr. Peixes took the room, and Levi closed his binder. “Welcome class, to another year of grueling torture. Just kidding! Ah ha ha ha am I right?” He was met with a lot of cheering from the class. Mr. Peixes was the kind of teacher who acted like he was everyone’s best friend, so convincingly, he became many students best friend. Levi wasn’t moved, but Hanji was one to take the bait, and Levi watched as glasses slid down their nose as they absorbed everything he said, describing the class and passing out syllabuses. Despite their previous excitement, Levi realized Hanji was sweating nervously. Then he realized that the grin hadn’t gone away, and realized Hanji was sweating with excitement. She really must love science. As the teacher introduced the class, he hissed, “Why do you want to take this class so bad?”

Unsurprisingly, this made Hanji crack a smile. “I already answered that question, but I really love animals. And science. And you, know, life. Did you know that in Latin ‘bio’ means life?”

“Uh, yes.” There was a pause. Levi waited a moment, then asked quietly, “So, are you a girl or a guy? Sorry, but I can’t tell.”

Hanji turned to look at Levi, and the smile quirked up to one side, eyes still darting back to the teacher. “I am a scientist.”

Levi frowned, but before he could press and further, he was interrupted. “Now, class, I’m sure you all knew what you were getting into when you signed up for this. But I’ll be the first to tell you: There’s going to be a lot of work. Buckle in, kids. To show you how serious I am, we’re going to kick off the year with a presentation. Now, I’m sure you’ve noticed that the desks are set up in twos.” Levi had not. “The person in the desk next to you will be your partner, any objections?” Levi jumped. Partners with Hanji? A presentation? He instantly started to raise his hand, then stopped and looked around. There were only 6 others in the class. He had nobody to switch partners with who’d agree. He reluctantly lowered his hand. 

Hanji’s glasses glinted in the light from the ceiling fan. “Dynamic duo, right? We’ll bring down the rain, believe me.” 

Levi sighed, visibly. It was going to be a long year.

**Author's Note:**

> To be continued, focus switching from Levi to Hanji. Tips or constructive criticism welcome.


End file.
